The Searcher and the Godling
by Tronnie
Summary: Grover finds more than he expected on his search for Pan. AU parallel to the real story. SPOILERS for SoM. SLASH Grover/OC. Please R&R! title and summary kinda suck..
1. I’m leaving the Garden:a quest of my own

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It's an AU that sort of runs parallel to the real story (at least I tried to keep it as close as I could). It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. Rated T now and T+ in later chapters. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**SPOILERS: for all the books, especially the **_**Sea of Monsters,**_** and with that said, if you **_**haven't**_** read them, you will be completely lost.**

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 1: I'm leaving the Garden: a quest of my own**

My name's Dap. Well, that's what I like to be called anyway, my real name is longer and …uh, embarrassing. I've lived here with my father for all my life. Here in this Secret Garden, which he made a _long_ time ago. He says it's the last place on earth that's completely wild. I wouldn't know. So the Garden and my father have been here for over two thousand years, it's moved with "Western civilization," as my father told me bitterly once, something I'd kind of like to know more about.

And I've been here, well, significantly less than that. But, c'mon, it's not like I'm getting any younger! Well, actually, I'm not getting any _older _either, being the child of a god will do that for you. But that's not the point.

I sighed and turned away from the sight of him, lying against an enormous tree, the heart of the Garden, to which he seemed to be physically connected. Indeed, he hadn't moved in months. Sleeping, probably. I could look at him in his divine form, though I didn't really like it. So he didn't show it often, which was nice.

I don't _dislike_ him. He _is_ my father and he treats me well. After all, he _gave_ me—us—this Garden.

It really should be everything I'd ever want. Being a satyr in the perfect wilderness with nothing even remotely human or worldly to disturb me. But that was kind of the problem. I'd lived here my whole life, and I didn't even _know_ anything worldly. I'd never been outside my father's walls.

I walked away, looking down at the dark fur that coated my legs, and my hooves snapped twigs on the floor of this precious wilderness. Yeah, so I was a little bitter. I think anyone would be.

I reached the boarders of the Garden. It was actually really far, but I can travel fast and far if I want to. Like the gods. I couldn't see the outer world, just the magic illusion that the Garden went on forever.

My father's voice sounded in my head. He knew what I was thinking most of the time. _Trust me, you don't want to go._

_Yes_, I did.

I was back at my father's tree. I looked at him and sighed. I'm sure he knew what I was thinking…again. See, father is set in his ways and he won't move or come out of hiding until "someone finds him." Apparently, people have been searching for him for a long time and for some reason, no one had succeeded yet.

It bugged me. _Why hasn't _anyone_ found him in all this time?! Satyrs should really be more acute than that…_

That night as I slept on it, something kept nagging at my mind._ Trust me, you don't want to go. _Same as he always said, but this time it rang in my head like…I had a choice. I _did_ have a choice.

So when morning came, nymphs fluttering in to wait on father with breakfast, I made my choice.

He looked at me. "If you're really going to go, you must make me an oath first. You cannot lead anyone to me, to this Garden. Or tell them in anyway. Swear it."

I wondered what he knew…. I swore it anyway though.

"And, son, keeping that oath might be easier if you don't tell who you really are," he added with a knowing look that showed his years. I was skeptical.

After I'd packed a couple things I thought I might need, (I really had no idea what to pack, seeing as I'd certainly never traveled) I left to find what was hindering searchers from finding this place. The sun rose to its zenith and speckled the grassy ground through the trees as I left the heart of the Garden. As I headed to the outskirts of the Garden, a chill ran up my spine wondering how long it'd be before I'd feel such lush warmth again: I didn't know if there were even such things in the outer world. So I crossed the magical borders with one look back that confused me a little because I felt…a little sad.

As soon as I set hoof beyond the large trees that made up the outside guard, I blanched. There was a _smell_…well, I guess it was more like a lack of smell. The smell of the Garden's wilderness was gone, and the smell of the outside was like that of a wilderness drained of life and cluttered with other unrefreshing things. My heart broke for what I _saw_, too. Small, struggling plants were clustered in patchy woods, fighting for ground amongst several types of unknown garbage. There was a sickly tinge to the vegetation that I had never known in the perfection of my father's Garden. As I walked by, the plants leaned towards me and surged back to life around my hooves. My father's way with plants had been somewhat passed to me.

But then what caught my attention was the smell of other _beings_. A lot of them, too, not all of them pleasant. After a while I realized that I was near a city full of humans, (which accounted for most of the smell) and when I moved beyond that, the human scent dulled and more vegetation got through.

I walked (and some not-walked) for about two hours, when I noticed a new and, at the same time, well-known scent on the air. It was a smell I knew very well. It was the heavy, wet, freshness that went with the wilderness surrounding my father. I sniffed the air. It was coming from the east, with a salty after breeze. It was coming to me carried by winds off the sea.


	2. I find what I’m looking for, then some

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 2: I find what I'm looking for, and then some.**

I popped into place after following that scent, and opened my eyes. What I saw caught me off guard: I was looking at a beautiful valley with pastures and mountains and trees. It was almost as beautiful as the Garden.

I was also on the edge of a hundred foot cliff, and yelped as I leapt--arms wind-milling--away from the edge. I really had to practice that whole teleporting thing…. I looked behind me and saw the ocean stretch as far as I could see. I'd never seen so much water in my life, and for a moment the sight of it captivated me. I was jolted out of my trance by a breeze that wafted the scent of the reason I'd come here. I looked across the island and saw a large tree flashing with something golden. What ever it was was glinting in the sun, and I could see it from where I was. But I wouldn't have even needed my eyes to find it: the aroma and aura coming off of it was so filled with lush nature life that it pulled me in. But now it wasn't gold…it was…it was my father! It was Father and I had to get to him! My mind was clouded by it.

I was drawn to it like a moth to fire and I only stopped when said fire erupted in front of me. I leapt back as the creature that had spit the fire opened its mouth for another shot.

I have to say, it was pretty terrifying for someone who'd never been outside paradise, and I didn't even know what the creatures _were. _ I also didn't think the rest that were surrounding me were going to tell me. At that point I knew two things: one, I had to get to that tree, and two, these monsters were going to kill me for trying.

I hesitated long enough for the golden prize to take hold of my mind and senses and basically brainwash away my fear. My desire for it clouded everything else.

I faced the beasts and with all my strength, willed the surrounding plants to serve me. I thrust my arms forward as a wall of grass shot out of the ground under them. Some of the monsters were tossed up in the air while others sunk, buried in the now twenty-foot high grass. I glared and long vine like whips came into my hands as I started into the mayhem, the grass parting in front of me.

I could hear strange roars of fury as the grass began to smoke and burn away. The beasts were coming back and they had found me again. I cracked my whip in their faces, calling other vines to wrap around them and tie them down. When the majority of them were tied up and confused with the plants, I teleported into the branches of the tree.

The vines released the beasts and they started to mill about calmly, as if they had been released from a spell and had forgotten I was there. I guessed their job was to guard the tree and now that I'd gotten past they didn't care.

I looked over at what looked like a huge golden carpet hung from one of the branches, my mind clear now that I was near it. Then I realized to my horror that it was a fleece. A goat fleece. Picture a human skin hanging just two feet from you. Yeah. I felt vaguely sick. Yet I was still draw to the Golden Fleece because of its raw nature aura.

The tree's branches split into several directions at one spot up the trunk and in this area there was a nice flat spot, about four feet square, because the tree was so big. I sat down there and put my head in my hands, trying to think straight.

I had just traveled who knows how far, chasing something that had reminded me of my father and driven me crazy. I was now in a tree on some island infested with killer fire breathing beasts and at a dead end. My quest had been to find what was distracting satyrs from finding the Garden and all I'd found was…

_Wait._

I froze as the thought hit me. If _I'd _been so drawn to this fleece from so far away, maybe others had had the same problem…

Suddenly my ears perked up and I heard a noise near the cliffs. I watched as a huge form started coming up over the edge. I couldn't tell whether I was frozen with amazement or fear as I saw the biggest monster I could've ever imagined stand upright after its climb and start lumbering across the ground.


	3. I meet someone else’s bride

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 3: I meet someone else's bride. **

Grover looked down from the fifteen-foot height that he was being carried from. He would've sighed if he hadn't been so gripped with fear he could barely breathe. _Heh, no pun intended_, he thought, because at the moment he was literally gripped by a hand so large it covered him from armpits to knees, so there really wasn't any fear of falling. _ If only that was my biggest concern!_ He thought grimly.

The scene would've been comical…to anyone else. The poor satyr fifteen feet in the air was in a wedding dress that he had hastily donned in south Florida to hide from the cyclops that was presently carrying him back to his island. _Guess the honeymoon's over. _ His dress was rumpled in the cyclops' grip and he was desperately trying to keep the white high heels from falling off his hooves.

The island was beautiful and would have made an excellent vacation spot: there were even sheep dotted over the landscape. _Huge_ sheep…. Grover watched with horror as one of the hippo-sized animals grabbed a rabbit that had tried to scurry by and ate it in one bite, snorting fire as it lumbered back to the herd.

At last the cyclops stopped in front of an enormous cave and rolled aside a boulder the size of a large minivan. He set Grover down roughly on a huge chair that he realized, like just about everything else in the cavern, was covered in sheep's wool. The cyclops grinned down at him with his ugly teeth. _Oh man, this is it! I'm gonna die! Percy! I hope you can hear me! No, wait! I don't want you to see this…_ Grover's mind raced a mile a minute as he braced himself for a closer view of those teeth, but to his surprise the monster spoke: his voice like the sound of stones rolling together. Big, stupid, rolling stones.

"You smell good, pretty lady. Like goats. You'll be my wife, my Honeycakes! That's why Polyphemus brings you here."

Grover couldn't believe what he'd just heard. He tried to say something but it sounded something like "gud uh??" Polyphemus didn't seem to hear him; he swung down to grab Grover again as Grover screeched and dove out of the way.

"W-wait!! Uh, I mean _wait!" _Grover put on a high falsetto voice to cover his slip up. "You want to m-marry me?? Uh, _dear_."

Polyphemus waved absently. "Yes. I need to settle down. Very lonely with just the sheepies. You make good wifey. We'll have wedding as soon as I feed sheep."

Grover paled. This was _not_ what he'd signed up for! He'd been searching for Pan, the nature god of the satyrs, and was following his scent when he'd run across this brute and ended up here. Now he felt like crying. He had to stall!

"U-um! N-no, wait! I mean, not y-yet, sweetums…. I-I should…um, make a wedding train for my dress!! Yeah, I'll weave one, a-and we can marry after that!" His plan spilled out fast as he remembered Penelope's similar situation with the suitors. He'd just have to stall by unraveling it until Percy and Annabeth came. They would come, they _had_ to! He'd keep up the empathy link he had with Percy until then.

Polyphemus seemed confused as he considered it. "Hmm okay, then. Yes you need train, not pretty enough yet…" Grover hmpfed in indignation before he could stop himself. "…How long will this take? A day?"

"O-oh no, well, I don't know. I'll do it as fast as I can."

The cyclops scratched his chin, and then pulled a huge loom out from behind a chair and set in front of Grover along with some wool thread, and stalked out grumpily, hauling his boulder front door shut behind him.

Grover ran to the stone and pushed with all his might; the boulder wouldn't even budge. He was trapped in the cave house of a twenty-foot monster that wanted to marry him. He figured it couldn't get much worse, unless he was eaten. But, oh yeah, he still had to weave a wedding train…

0o0o0o0o0o

Back from my tree I saw the whole scene. I would've run the other way, but I thought I saw something in its hand. It is! _Someone_, more like it. Then I realized the danger that that victim was in and I couldn't help myself. I popped over to the side of the massive cave and hid behind some huge rocks by its outer wall.

And I couldn't believe the conversation that I heard. I peeked around and saw the monster talking to a satyr in a dirty ill-fitting white dress. He was pale with fear and splayed on the ground where he'd been dropped. He had curly brown hair and looked like he was in his teens (satyr teens that is). He had a splash of freckles across his face and short horns that curled slightly back from his hair. I was sort of spellbound by him.

But I was still trying to figure out why a _guy _satyr was wearing a dress in the first place, when what they were saying registered in my head.

I barely remembered to hide again when Polyphemus came out. I dove back behind the rock as he paused, turning in my direction and inhaling deeply with a snort. He creased the brow over his one milky eye and got a look of deep concentration, like he was studying something. I realized he was blind, and relied on smelling instead. He must've caught a whiff of me, but then dismissed it as he rolled the stone back in place and turned away down to his pastures.

When I'd snapped out of my near-death experience trance, I glanced around for good measure and teleported inside.


	4. Grover makes me confused about friends

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 4: Grover makes me a little confused about "friendship"**

Grover yelped and fell back when I appeared next to him. Actually it was more like _on top of_ him, so I'd probably be a little freaked out too. I'm pretty sure I was blushing and I wasn't sure why. He, on the other hand, was sputtering and pointing like he'd seen a ghost.

I guess the poor guy _had_ had enough scares for one lifetime. So I tried to make things better.

"Uh it's ok! I've been watching you!" …Well _that_ was a swift thing to say, Dap!

It kind of worked though, because Grover's expression turned from panicked to aghast and I could read the _What??_ in his eyes.

"I mean… I heard what you and Polyphemus said and saw it all."

Grover seemed to snap out of it. "How'd you—where'd you—who _are_ you?" Well, maybe not quite. "You just popped out of the air! I-I've only seen gods do that!"

"Well, I'm—" I stopped, remembering my Father's warning. "…I'm…a student…of, of the gods. I mean, one taught me how to teleport like them. My name's Dap."

I looked at Grover to see if he bought it and wasn't sure for about three scary seconds, until he changed the subject. "Well, if you've come here on your search for Pan, it's a trap! I-I saw something out there. I think it's the Golden Fleece, you know, from the story, and it's been drawing satyrs here because of it's wild scent! Just like it drew me!"

He still seemed a bit hysterical, but what he said jarred me. He had been searching for Pan? And he thought I was too? And he'd come to the same conclusions that I had about the Fleece.

I tried to remember the story he mentioned. I racked my brain, sorting through all the stories my father had told me as a kid.

There was a silence and I looked back to see Grover staring at me like he'd just gotten over the sight of a satyr popping out of thin air and landing on top of him. "Dap….you, you smell like…like the Fleece. Like Pan." His voice was kind of dreamy sounding, like he'd just realized the sky was blue and it amazed him. I tried not to react to his comment though. "Uh, that's because…I was just near the Fleece. I came from the tree where it is, so its scent is probably on me or something."

"Oh…"

Grover proceeded to tell me how he'd gotten in this situation after some curious questions from me, and I hung on every word. Not only because it was a very interesting story, (a lot of which I didn't understand fully. The things that had to do with humans and cites and camps.) but I also couldn't stop _looking_ at him. Grover was the first and only other satyr I had ever seen, and I was hooked.

I'm not sure if what I was feeling was friendship, because I'd never had a friend before, but I wanted to be next to him and look at him and touch him and listen to him talk. He'd gone on a tangent about a camp and some humans from somewhere called New York, and as I continued to "listen" to his story, I realized I wanted to do other things too. All the aspects of being a satyr that I hadn't had much opportunity to experiment with came to mind.

Oh. _That's_ why I was blushing.


	5. I meet the cute teleporting satyr

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 5: I meet the cute teleporting satyr.**

o0o Grover's POV o0o

I'm really surprised I didn't, like, _wet_ myself or something horrible like that when that kid—"_Dap"_—popped out of thin air and onto my lap. Of course then there was that horrible half a second when he just looked down at me blushing, before scrambling off. Fortunately, I think I was too freaked out to be red in the face myself. _Fortunately_, I stammered and pointed, while trying to form a complete sentence.

He looked a little sorry and tried to help, but all he did was basically admit to _stalking_ me before jumping me out of the air! Needless to say I wasn't very comforted by that. My mind flit quickly to calling out to Percy for help, but then he remedied his earlier faux pas. "I mean… I heard what you and Polyphemus said and saw it all."

Oh, okay. But there was still one little thing…"How'd you—where'd you—who _are_ you?" Well, maybe I wasn't quite as calm as I was in my thoughts. "You just popped out of the air! I-I've only seen gods do that!"

I looked at his face, desperate for an answer to such a pressing mystery as that. He shifted and looked a little uncomfortable. He wouldn't meet my eyes. "Well, I'm—" he paused, "…I'm…a student…of, of the gods. I mean, one taught me how to teleport like them. My name's Dap."

I furrowed by brow. There was something about what he said… " a student of the gods…"? I didn't think the gods _had_ students. Maybe he'd just gotten lucky on some god's good side and had been taken as an apprentice. Then my mind brought me back to the problem and flashed neon signs about the danger we were both still in. He must be a searcher like me and therefore we were both caught here with the cyclops!

"Well, if you've come here on your search for Pan, it's a trap! I-I saw something out there. I think it's the Golden Fleece, you know, from the story, and it's been drawing satyrs here because of it's wild scent! Just like it drew me!"

There was a strange glint in his eye at something that I'd said and suddenly I realized something I hadn't before: I'd remembered the Fleece because Dap had reminded me of it. He smelled just like it! For a few seconds that thought reeled me.

"Dap….you, you smell like…like the Fleece. Like Pan."

"Uh, that's because…I was just near the Fleece. I came from the tree where it is, so its scent is probably on me or something."

I was still a little confused. "Oh…"

He waited for me to say something else, and when I didn't he started asking me questions, like how I'd gotten here and other stuff about me. So I told him; I was just kind of happy that I wasn't alone here. He did seem nice. He looked to be about my age, a little taller than me, with darker hair and fur. His hair was very dark, almost black, and his horns were longer than mine, curving to the back of his head. I saw that he had dark soft eyes, before I remembered I _shouldn't_ notice, let alone care about, his _dark, soft eyes._ I did a mental facepalm. _Seriously_, Grover?

I kept talking without really hearing myself. I was pretty sure I had gone through about half my life story, and was somewhere around capture the flag at camp. But Dap seemed to be listening to what I was saying just about as well as I _knew_ what I was saying, and he was looking at me kind of the same way I (to my great fear) was looking at him.

It was awhile before either of us realized I'd stopped talking. Then I realized, and stuttered to change the subject off of myself.

"So um, Dap, is that a nickname? Uh, what's your last name?"

He faltered a bit then answered, twirling his fingers in his leg fur to avoid looking at me.

"Um, yeah. My full name's Daphnis. I…I was named after an old lover of my father's or something…"

_Wait, what? That was a _guy's_ name. And where've I _heard _that before? _

Before I could say anything though, we were interrupted by low booming steps marking the return of Polyphemus. I scrambled up and looked at Dap. "Can you, like, teleport me out!"

He shook his head, looking pained. "I-I can only move myself…"

"Then go!"

He stepped closer to me. "I can't just _leave_ you!"

I stepped in front of him because I saw the boulder starting to move. "He knows _I'm_ here, but he'll smell you and eat you! Go! I'll…be okay."

He glanced between me and the door before nodding and popping out of existence beside me.

"Come back soon…?" I mumbled as the huge form of the cyclops filled the cavern, and blocked out the view of the Fleece's tree, which is where I just _knew_ Dap was sitting already, watching the scene.


	6. I slept with the cyclops’ bride

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

this chapter runs a little AU parallel to the actual story

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 6: I slept with the cyclops' bride. **

That night I risked popping back in when I thought the cyclops would be asleep. It was a little past midnight and I was standing outside by the door to the cave. With my emphatic abilities I could sense the calmness that usually went with sleep (I could also sense Grover's fear even though he might also have been sleeping). But I ran some thin vines through the cracks to listen for snoring just in case.

Once the coast was clear I came in, appearing in the gloom of the cave and letting my eyes adjust to the dim light given off by a small sheep nightlight.

I could see Polyphemus: a large mass lying in a huge bed, breathing like a mountain. Beside him, but not that far away was a smaller quivering form.

I could almost see Grover's eyes wide open, too afraid to dare go to sleep. I walked over silently, thinking I might have to jump and cover his mouth, but before I could he saw me and sat up with a small noise. He quickly shut up and crawled over to me once he'd figured out who I was.

"Oh, thank gods!" He whispered and huddled near me. I'm pretty sure he didn't really know what he was doing. He continued whispering hurriedly. "I convinced him that we shouldn't sleep together since we weren't married yet…. You came back."

"Of course I did. I was waiting all this time to come back…. And I was thinking all that time too: Let me trade places with you, Grover. I'll wear the dress and you can hide and run away the next time he opens the door."

He looked surprised. "What? No way! I'm not gonna leave you here! He'll find out eventually, and I've got people who're coming to save me."

Polyphemus snorted and shuffled. Grover cowered and lowered his voice, looking anxiously back at me. I met his eyes. "Who's coming? And when? Like you said, he'll find out eventually and if they're not here yet, you'll be eaten! I'm not going to let that happen!"

There was a pause, then: "Why would you do that for me? You're risking your life…"

I was kind of glad for the darkness to hide my blush; of course, it didn't really matter when Grover was an empath too. He was still waiting for an answer though.

"I-I just…want to. It'd be worth it…. For you."

I met his eyes in the dark and could sense his feelings. He wasn't really trying to hide them. I was pretty sure I felt the same was he was feeling.

"Oh…well, that's…nice, Dap. You'd…do that for me?"

There were too many emotions that were swirling around me; I was dazed. Grover must've been more used to this than me. I nodded because I wasn't sure I could speak at the moment. I was trying to figure out if he'd _sighed,_ when he confirmed it by leaning into me. After a minute or so, his emotions faded to calm, and I knew he was asleep. It had been a trying day; I was tired too... And then I blacked out.

It was really lucky that Polyphemus hit snooze on the alarm click in the morning and flopped back over, because it gave me time to realize where I was and do something about it. I awoke with a start and looked down at the warm ball of wedding dress and bed head lying on top of me, which was also starting to moan, waking up.

"Grover!" I hissed. "Get up! I've gotta go!"

I picked him up as best I could and moved him over. He murmured sleepily, "whussit? It's cold…"

I couldn't help but smirk. And I _really_ couldn't help it when I leaned down and kissed him. And before he was fully awake I vanished back to the branches of the Fleece tree.

Over the next week or so my visits with Grover were somewhat limited to when Polyphemus was out. It was kind of frustrating too, because I really wanted to spend more time with him. He was just locked up in that cave all the time slaving over a wedding train that Polyphemus was getting more and more impatient about.

I still wasn't sure how, but I was going to get both Grover and that fleece away from this island so no other satyrs would come here again. I knew I could just teleport the fleece somewhere safe, but that would mean leaving Grover here alone, and I wouldn't do that.

I brought up this concern when I saw him next and he looked at me like I'd just casually mentioned I know the cure for cancer.

"But Dap, that's a great idea! You take the Fleece away, you can!"

"But—"

"No, listen, I've been talking to my friend Percy and they're searching for the Fleece anyway because it can save the camp! You could just bring it to camp!"

I was a little uneasy and I told him I wasn't really comfortable going to his camp. But he convinced me I just had to hang it from the branches of a pine tree on a hill at the borders, and that was all.

So after a lot of convincing on his part, I agreed and we made a plan that I would take it in the night, when Polyphemus was asleep.


	7. I have the worst swim lesson ever

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

this chapter runs a little AU parallel to the actual story

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 7: I have the worst swim lesson ever.**

It took a lot more convincing than that to make me leave him for however long it would take me to get back. But a couple nights later I was packed, with the huge fleece draped over my shoulders, and was trying to remember the directions Grover had said about how to get to the camp.

I couldn't really teleport to places I didn't know how to get to. I still don't know how I managed to get to the island, then. _Must've been with help from my father_, I decided.

It took a _long_ time to get to Camp Half-Blood, as I'd had to follow the same course Grover had taken, because that was the only way he could describe in enough detail. Like, longer than I'd ever traveled before. About three days to be exact. I appeared beside a massive pine tree just like he said, but what I saw about the place mad my stomach twist.

The tree and all the life around it was poisoned and dying. They were a sickly yellow and fading fast. For a few minutes all I could do was stand and stare at the tree in disbelief. Where I stood the grass was feebly trying to be green again, but was failing miserably. There were sad tunes floating through the woods from reed pipes played by satyrs that were on 24-hour guard, trying to keep the tree alive. Some of the songs stopped uncertainly when I appeared, and I wondered if they could sense me.

I decided not to find out, so I draped the Golden Fleece over the lowest branch and turned to leave.

I then proceeded to have a minor panic attack because I realized I couldn't follow the scent of the fleece to lead me back to the island. _No! I have to get back to Grover! What am I gonna do now? _ My thoughts were swarming around so fast, mingled with the command to teleport, that when I opened my eyes again I was back on Polyphemus' island.

What I saw was not what I expected to see, that's for sure. The island was in chaos: the cyclops was in a rage, hurling boulders at tiny humans who were attacking him. Grover was cowering near a girl in full armor who was lying wounded on the ground. There was also a floating hat darting around and a couple of ships that were banked by the cliffs.

The people were now screaming: they had been taunting Polyphemus with remarks about "Nobody" and now the floating hat was lying still on the ground. A boy attacked him and before I knew it they were running towards the sea with the cyclops following, hurling boulders. I realized I hadn't really moved the whole time—I'd been too captivated by the scene—but I heard someone calling my name. Grover had noticed me and was waving frantically. I made to run to them but Polyphemus saw me first.

Grover screamed and I turned just in time to duck under the trail of a half-ton rock being thrown over my head.

Everyone was wading into the sea and Grover, who was trying to run to me, was being held back by his friends who seemed more than a little confused. I had no idea if I could swim or not but I ran into the water after everyone else as fast as I could. A huge wave hurled me forward as the giant surged in after me. I could hear noises, and Grover yelling to someone to control the sea and help me.

As the wave surged down and I was pulled under I realized I could _not_ swim, and panicked as my air was cut off. Boulders were still raining down on us, but I didn't care. I was quickly loosing consciousness.

As I was blacking out, I felt an arm wrap around my middle and drag me into a what I later found out was a large air bubble. I blearily looked up at the dark haired boy who was steering the bubble and kicking for the surface.

The next thing I knew I was dumped on the deck of a boat and the boy dove off the side again to fight Polyphemus. I spluttered and coughed up water as more people climbed over the railings of the boat. They weren't in much better shape than I was and one girl was barely conscious. No one noticed me as the bigger girl ran to the edge and shouted at the cyclops. "Yeah! Take that, you stupid brute!"

Within seconds a boulder fell within feet of the ship, creating waves so powerful I was knocked over again. I slammed into the mast of the ship and, once again, my world went black.


	8. I’m almost killed several different tim

This story has been running around my head for a looong time now

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

this chapter runs a little AU parallel to the actual story

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 8: I'm almost killed several different times, but I get the guy!**

When I woke again it was calm and everyone was getting up. We had somehow gotten away from Polyphemus and I think a lot of it had to do with the dark haired boy. I'm pretty sure he was the "Percy" Grover was always talking about. The bigger girl was tending the the other girl, and after a minute declared she had broken ribs. She was muttering angrily, something like "…can't believe it wasn't even _there_! This was _my_ quest!"

Percy was sailing the ship over the now calm water and I realized for the first time that there was also another young cyclops in our presence. No one seemed alarmed by him, though.

I sat up and I heard a cry from somewhere near. Hooves clopped quickly towards me and I looked up just as Grover launched himself into my arms.

"You're ok! I thought you wouldn't make it back and then when you did I thought you were going to drown and, oh! Dap!" I think he was crying, and I think I was too.

He stopped talking long enough to slam his mouth onto mine and my eyes got wide. He took me by surprise, and it took me awhile to get over it and cling to him. I didn't realize people were watching us until there was a long silence and Grover pulled away, redder than I'd ever seen him. I looked around at the humans with their jaws on the floor and I turned just about as red as Grover. He buried his face in my shoulder, and I wanted to get just as small.

Percy tried to avert his eyes, mumbling something in Grover's direction about not sharing _his_ dreams with him, of you please. He said he'd already met me, which made Grover even more embarrassed.

The bigger girl snorted from the other side. "This is the clown that took the Fleece, isn't it, goat boy? Your _boyfriend_?" She sneered.

_Goat boy? Boyfriend?_

I think she was talking to Grover.

"Shut up, Clarisse! He…he's not…" Grover trailed off and the smaller girl chuckled, which looked like it hurt her. "I think it's cute, Grover. And besides, the important thing is that the Fleece is already at camp."

"Thanks, Annabeth. You're right." Grover smiled sheepishly. Then he seemed to remember something, or maybe he just wanted to change to subject. "Thanks for coming you guys."

Everyone seemed okay with a change of subject because they started talking about quests and Iris messages and Chiron and the pine tree. They milled about awkwardly like nothing had happened, and I could tell Grover was grateful.

I probably should've tried to keep track of everyone, but honestly I was still reeling from the kiss. The satyr that had just _kissed_ me was still sitting on my lap, and I was really starting to get comfortable with this.

We arrived in south Florida after a few hours and were immediately attacked by a boy with a ship of monsters at his command. Man! This was turning out to be more action than I'd experienced all my life! I was so tired by then that most of it was a blur.

Soon a herd of centaurs rushed the boy and his monsters and ran away with us on their backs. I'd never ridden on a centaur—heck I'd never _seen_ a centaur, and I'd never traveled so fast on the ground before! We were back at the campgrounds on the other side of the country in no time at all!


	9. Well, we ARE satyrs!

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

I really AU'd up this one XD

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. Dap belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 9: Well, we **_**are**_** satyrs!**

We'd all settled down back at the camp, and the attentions turned to me.

Dionysus, who was for some reason calling himself Mr. D., said he didn't want me there because "…this is a camp for half-bloods. …Unfortunately."

Chiron, the white centaur counselor, gave him a look.

I stuck pretty close to Grover. There were a lot of people there and they were making me nervous. Partly because the satyrs wouldn't stop doing double takes at me. I was still trying to hide my identity after all, and it was getting harder. I glanced at a potted plant that had straightened to attention and doubled in height beside me, and scrambled to cover it, hoping no one had seen. _No, down! At ease. I'm trying to keep a low profile here._

It was one of those times when I'd lost Grover. Well, not _lost_, he'd just gone inside the big house for a minute and I was sitting outside on the porch.

Mr. D. and Chiron had agreed to let me stay with Grover in the satyr's house. To my delight and Grover's embarrassment, (and secret happiness, I could tell) we had to share his cot because there was not an extra one for me.

I almost couldn't wait for the dinner to be over, (even though I was so hungry I could've eaten everything there) and I scraped a part of my dinner in the fire and thanked my father, making sure he knew how happy I was right then. I'm pretty sure he already knew, though.

Later that night I was _sure_ he knew, because he "blessed" me as we were going to bed, and I turned hungry eyes on Grover.

Now, I knew Grover was about thirty, but I also knew he'd never done this before. I crawled on top of him and looked down at him. I planned on awakening this in him, and I could sense and see in his eyes that he wasn't going to stop me. He groaned and leaned up into me. "D-ap…"

o0o0o0o

Grover awoke in his cot, and glanced over at the body lying against his. _Gods…. _He almost laughed to himself. _I can't _believe _I did that! Oh man…._ He grinned at Dap, and leant down to kiss him…and almost got his face smashed in when a bang on the door woke Dap and he sat up in surprise. They were both kind of grumpy now. A satyr came in without further invitation, and glanced at them without much interest. "C'mon Lovebirds, breakfast. Chiron says last call for food. We all thought you guys were dead or somethin'. Didn't figure you'd _kill_ him, Dap." With that he ran for the door before the reed pipes could slam into his head. Grover was red again and Dap grinned at him. He kissed him and slid out of the bed.

They finished eating and Grover found Percy. Percy was looking embarrassed and pulled him aside.

"Uh, man, listen…you're my best bud an' all, but, could you uh, maybe tune down the empathy link when you…uh…"

"Oh my gods Percy!" Grover wailed. "No! I'm soooo sorry!" Grover buried his face in his hands and sat on the ground. "I can't believe…" he mumbled. The poor guy'd been embarrassed more times in the past few days than anyone should have been in all their life.

Both he and Percy stood in awkward silence, neither knowing how to leave the conversation, when Annabeth called Percy over. Grover had never seen him look so relieved as he said his goodbyes. Grover sighed and went into the big house.

Annabeth leaned close to Percy. "You should hear this…" He followed her quizzically to Mr. D.'s house where they hid outside the front door from where they could hear he and Chiron talking. "They're talking about Dap…" Annabeth informed him.

"…and I don't like it, he's freaking out the strawberries!" Mr. D. was saying gruffly.

"Well, what did you expect from a satyr of his…ah, lineage. This _is_ and camp for half-bloods, Dionysus."

"Whatever, Chiron. We'd better stop this conversation, there are some spies outside the door…"

There was a silence and Chiron appeared in front of them. He sighed. "Come in, I suppose."

Mr. D. sneered at them. " You know, you really shouldn't try to _eavesdrop_ on an all knowing deity…"

They mumbled apologies, then Percy blurted: "Chiron, is there something about Dap? Something we should warn Grover about?"

Chiron looked at him and paused. "Well, what do you know about him?"

"Um…...that he's horny?"

Mr. D. snorted. "What, _pun intended?_ Of course he is! Tell us something we don't know, please."

Chiron sighed again because he could see that Percy didn't get it. He really _did_ wish the boy were brighter sometimes. "That's…where that saying came from, Percy…Most satyrs are like that to some degree."

Percy blushed, but Annabeth gasped. "His name! That's not his real name is it? I think I heard him say it was Daphnis, right?" Chiron nodded. "Named after…a lover of his father!"

O0o0o0o

Meanwhile Dap was trying to get out of a confrontation with a few other satyrs who were asking both about him and his night with Grover. He turned, relieved, and then a little surprised, when Grover came stumbling out of the big house looking pale. He was mumbling and looking back through the open door like he'd seen a ghost.

Grover started talking before anyone could ask him what was wrong. "He-he talked to me! He spoke!"

Percy and Annabeth had come out and where running to him. "Wait, _who_ spoke to you? And what did he say?" Percy asked.

Grover looked at him like he wasn't really seeing him. "Pan! The god of the wild! He said three words: _I await you_."


	10. I give up my everything for him

**This story has been running around my head for a looong time now. It takes place (and I wrote it) before **_**Battle of the Labyrinth**_**, so some of the elements in it might be a little off later. Oh well. It features an OC of mine, and ****will be slash****. Grover/OC. So don't like, don't read. : ) And ****don't**** flame, seriously. **

**Disclaimer****: Percy Jackson and the Olympians and all of its characters belong to Rick Riordan. I belongs to me. : )**

**Chapter 10: **

o0o Dap's POV o0o

I stared wide-eyed at what Grover had just said. I didn't think anyone else had gotten the same meaning from it as I had. _I _knew_ it. I just knew this was a way father was talking to me! _But what that implied for me dampened my spirit a little.

I walked over to Grover, not meeting his eyes. " Grover, can I talk to you…um, privately?"

Grover seemed to snap out of it and he nodded. We walked away from the group into the shallow of the woods. I turned to him. "Um, Grover, I…I have something I need to do. Um, it won't take long, but it's important and…and I need to go alone."

Grover looked up at me with a sad, questioning face. "But, you can't _go_. We have to go search for Pan! You have to come with me…" He finished lamely, looking down at his hooves. He willed himself not to cry, but I could feel his emotions anyway. I touched Grover's chin and tilted his head up.

"I know. That's _why_ I need to do this. And I will go with you, when I get back. I promise it won't take long. I'll be back before the day's over." I kissed him quickly, turning and disappearing before he could stop me.

I appeared outside the borders of a very familiar Garden. I couldn't see the Garden because I was on the outside of its borders, but I knew it was there and I could feel my father's presence beyond the magical walls. I silently asked for entrance and stepped beyond the line of trees.

I covered the ground to the center tree and my father emerged from it, releasing vines and leaves as he did. He was in his most common form, although he still towered over me at about ten feet tall. I looked up from his jet black furry legs and hooves to his face, ringed with black shaggy hair and thick horns the shade of gunmetal so long they curled several times before turning behind his head. He regarded me with an unreadable expression. Sometimes it was hard to not be able to even read his _face_ when he could read my mind!

But then his eyes got a mischievous glint and he sat back down against the tree trunk. "Welcome back, son. Did you enjoy your night?"

I blushed, but couldn't help nodding. He laughed out loud, something I hadn't heard in _years_. It made me smile.

I decided to get to the point, though. "Father, why did you talk to Grover? I…I got the feeling it was…for me. To let me know…that you approved."

"Hmm, yes…what would give you such an idea young man?"

I glared; he was messing with me. "Father! I love him! You know that. And…you probably know why I'm here, too." I waited to see his reaction and saw the sparkle leave his eyes. I was a little sad too.

"Daphnis…will you leave me, too?"

"No, father" I didn't even cringe at the use of my real name. "But I want to be with him…forever. For _his_ forever. I want to be mortal with him."

I steeled my gaze, readying myself for his refusal, but he just looked sadder.

"So you _will_ leave me then…. Son, you must be sure about this…"

I was, and he knew it. I didn't relent my decision, but I did feel a bit sorry for him. "Father, I'm not giving up on you. If you want to wait for someone to find you, then fine. I'll be helping Grover search anyway, and we'll find you all over again."

I said this because I knew what his next words would be.

"Daphnis, if this is what you choose, not only will you be giving up immortality, but you will loose all memories of this place and its location. You will _truly_ be searching for me." He smiled again. "And I won't go easy on you."

"Yes, father."

o0o0o

_I turned to him. "Um, Grover…I have something I need to tell you. Something I wasn't allowed to tell you before. I'm…a son_ _of Pan." _

_He looked like he wanted to laugh, but was afraid to. "You're…what?"_

_I sighed, "It's true, Grover. I'm sorry I didn't tell you; I couldn't. I swore that I wouldn't reveal my father's location…"_

"_Oh…"_

o0o0o

"_You're back, Dap! …What is it?" He was worried because he could sense that I was different._

"_I…want to be with you…because…you're all that I have now. I gave up my immortality…my father…." I sounded so weak, like my spirit had been drained out of me. He could tell. He wrapped me in his arms and held me and I felt my strength come back. _

"_I'll be with you, then, don't worry. I love you, after all." He smiled at me and I was reminded of...something…like some place where there was a garden of perfection…_

"_C'mon then! I packed your bag too. We've got a lot of searching to do now that you're just as ignorant as I am!" I laughed along with him as he pulled me along into the woods._

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

**Thanks so much for reading, and I hoped you liked it! :)**

**If you did, please please review! I live on reviews! nom nom :T**


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